This triploid plant has both Musa acuminata and Musa balbisiana in its pedigree. This triploid hybrid is the product of an inter-specific cross between an improved hybrid tetraploid (AABB) type Bluggoe and an improved diploid (AA) of Musa acuminata. Its Latin name is Musa acuminataxc3x97balbisiana group AAB. AA representing two genomes of M. acuminata and B representing one genome of M. balbisiana. 
xe2x80x98FHIA-25xe2x80x99.
This new variety was developed at the Fundacixc3x3n Hondurexc3x1a de Investigacixc3x3n Agrxc3xadcola (FHIA) in La Lima, Honduras from a cross made in 1995. It was selected in 1997 from several first-generation seedlings from the cross SH-3648xc3x97SH-3142 (both unpatented and both developed from accessions and breeding lines which are unpatented and are in the FHIA germplasm collection). SH-3648, which was developed by inventor, is a dwarf, bred tetraploid that is resistant to the black Sigatoka leaf spot disease. The pedigree of SH-3648 is II-408 and I-63xe2x86x92SH-2952xc3x97SH-2741xe2x86x92SH-3386xc3x97SH-3362xe2x86x92SH-3648. The two original II-408 and I-63 parental lines are the xe2x80x98Gaddatuxe2x80x99 (ABB) triploid clone from the Philippines and a Musa balbisiana (BB) diploid clone of unknown origin that was collected in Costa Rica, respectively. SH-2741 is a dwarf, bred diploid which was derived from AVP-45xc3x97AVP-23xe2x86x92SH-90xc3x97II-334xe2x86x92SH-2518xc3x97II-158xe2x86x92SH-2741. The AVP-45, AVP-23, II-334 and II-158 parental lines are a wild Musa acuminata subsp. zebrina diploid accession from Java, a xe2x80x98Robustaxe2x80x99 Cavendish triploid clone that was collected in Jamaica, a wild Musa acuminata subsp. siamea diploid from Malaysia, and a parthenocarpic Musa acuminata subsp. errans diploid from North Borneo, respectively. The SH-3362 diploid parental line of SH-3648 was selected from a segregating population derived from SH-3142xc3x97SH-3217. The SH-3142 diploid, which was developed by inventor and is the female parent of SH-3362 and the male parent of xe2x80x98FHIA-25xe2x80x99, was derived by crossing the SH-1734 bred diploid onto the xe2x80x98Pisang Jari Buayaxe2x80x99 natural diploid that was collected from Papua New Guinea. The diploids which are in the pedigree of SH-1734 are the xe2x80x98Lidixe2x80x99 and xe2x80x98Sinwobogixe2x80x99 parthenocarpic clones and a Musa acuminata subsp. errans wild type that were collected in Sumatra, Irian Jaya, and the Philippines, respectively. The SH-3217 parent of SH-3362 is a complex bred diploid, which has in its pedigree the parthenocarpic xe2x80x98Guyodxe2x80x99, xe2x80x98Tjau Lagadaxe2x80x99, and xe2x80x98Sinwobogixe2x80x99 natural diploids and a wild Musa acuminata subsp. malaccensis accession from the Philippines, Java, Irian Jaya, and Malaysia, respectively. xe2x80x98FHIA-25xe2x80x99 was selected as a hybrid triploid that maintained the dwarf plant stature and black Sigatoka resistance of its SH-3648 tetraploid parental line, but differs from SH-3648 in that it does not produce pollen. This absence of pollen results in seedless fruit, as compared to the seedy fruit of SH-3648, and this characteristic of xe2x80x98FHIA-25xe2x80x99 permits it to be cultivated as a commercial variety without concerns about seediness. xe2x80x98FHIA-25xe2x80x99 is also readily distinguished from SH-3648 by its rounded fruit shape, which closely resembles that of the reference Cavendish export banana, as compared to a more angular fruit shape for SH-3648.
This new cooking banana plant was asexually reproduced by corms as performed by inventor in the experimental farm of FHIA in La Lima, Cortxc3xa9s, Honduras and shows that all plant and fruit characteristics run true to the original selected plant and are identical in all respects.
This new and distinct variety of cooking banana is a vigorous dwarf plant that produces large bunches of fruit. It is highly resistant to the black Sigatoka leaf spot disease, which is the most destructive and most costly disease of bananas and plantains worldwide. Interest in this new variety is that it is the first dwarf cooking banana that is highly resistant to black Sigatoka and has excellent cooking qualities as green fruit. This combination of exceptional plant and fruit characteristics make it a candidate for cultivation as a green cooking banana in areas where black Sigatoka has severely reduced the yields of the natural banana and plantain varieties that have traditionally been cultivated for production of green fruit for cooking.